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Beginning May 2, the Tampa Bay Times will introduce a reimagined North of Tampa section to bring you the most interesting and important news and information about your community every Friday.

It will be a robust, community-focused weekly "newspaper within a newspaper" with news, entertainment, sports, business and real estate. It will go hand in hand with the daily newspaper, where you will find more local news every day that matters to Hillsborough County residents, and our website, tampabay.com, a 24/7 source of breaking news and information.

You'll notice some new things about the North of Tampa section. It will have a fresh new look. And on Page 2 you'll find a new opinion page with editorials that provide an important local voice on key issues that affect your community. That's also where you'll find the weekly column from Pulitzer Prize winner Dan Ruth.

You'll also continue to find your favorite features. Ernest Hooper's column will appear on the front page. Real estate listings, which previously ran on Sunday, will be found Friday, along with our Things to Do entertainment report, the Hometown Hillsborough feature and religion news. Amy Scherzer's Diary of social events will continue to run every week from September through May. And a community news report on Page 3 will give you a quick overview of news and events happening in your neighborhood and those surrounding it.

We're also excited to introduce a new online feature on tampabay.com. We've created an easily searchable database of crimes reported in your area. You can search the county by ZIP code, street name or the type of crime to find the information you're most interested in. The reports are updated daily. To see the online crime report, go to tampabay.com/hillsborough and click on the crime report link in the middle of the page.

You will get your first new weekly North of Tampa section on Friday, May 2. MarketLink, a section with advertising from businesses in your community, will debut Sunday, May 4. And the final Sunday North of Tampa section will publish on April 27.

With these changes, I want to assure you that the Times' commitment to covering local news is as strong as ever. I've called Hillsborough County home since coming to the Times eight years ago, and I am committed to helping lead our coverage of the area.

If you have questions or comments, I'd like to hear from you. The best way to reach me is by email at rmartin@tampabay.com. If you'd rather speak by phone, call me at (813) 226-3322.